ANDERSON, S.C. — There are many factors that can impact fishing, but for the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine Super Tournament on Lake Hartwell set for Sept. 27-28, it really comes down to just one.
“We can think about things all we want, but really, it starts and ends with the bluebacks,” says local Jayme Rampey.
Considering he’s won multiple BFL Super Tournaments on the lake (and a Regional, too), Rampey might know a thing or two about what it takes to succeed on Hartwell in the fall.
This year, BFL anglers benefit from an expanded slate of Regionals, which minimizes travel costs and provides more opportunities to qualify for the $120,000 BFL All-American while fishing familiar, closer-to-home waters. Click here to find out more.
What to expect
To say blueback herring have impacted the fishing in many Southeastern fisheries is an understatement, and Hartwell is no exception. The open-water, roaming schools of bluebacks have completely altered not just the quality of bass in the fisheries but also how anglers target them.
So, as big as Hartwell is when you consider its three feeder rivers – the Savannah, Seneca and Tugaloo – Rampey figures those rivers won’t hardly play. Why? The bluebacks won’t be there.
“The bass go where (the bluebacks) go,” Rampey said. “If they’re in 12 feet, the bass will be in 12. If they’re over 60 feet, the bass will be over 60. It’s that simple. And the bluebacks like the main lake.”
With that, Rampey figure offshore will be the place to win this event, with the bass staging in standing timber waiting to ambush bluebacks. However, he did note the shallow bite can also produce some solid bags this time of year, and a pro may want to do a little of both.
“I think you can catch a big bag up shallow, but only one day,” Rampey said. “Doing it two days in a row would be so tough, because you’ll need to cover so much water burning the bank.
“But if a pro does that one day and then goes offshore the next with forward-facing sonar, that can definitely win.”
Hartwell houses some hefty spotted bass, but Rampey thinks the key will be catching a couple big largemouth each day, which can be done both shallow and deep.
Baits to bring
Just like he’s not one to overthink the bluebacks, Rampey says not to overthink lures.
“I’d have on a buzzbait and a Zoom Horny Toad, a Zoom Super Fluke and couple topwaters tied on,” Rampey said. “That will cover you both shallow or deep.
“Oh, and really good trolling motor batteries.”
What will it take?
Back when Rampey won his Super Tournament and Regional, he was doing so with around 13 pounds a day. However, that was before the explosion of forward-facing sonar. Now, he says the mark to shoot for is 17 pounds a day.
“You take forward-facing sonar away, and it’d go back to 13 pounds,” he said. “But with it, the weights have just gone up so much.”